Is-thisminorityreport-land?

Rating: 4/10 (21 September 2005)

Well, I thought The Island was a good idea that progressively soured over the duration of the film. The end of the movie is abrupt, unsatisfying, and generally the type I hate. I almost stopped the movie before it actually ended, because I knew that the narrative was already over. Imagine five minutes of conclusion that you could foresee just as easily as background video during the credits.
Some aspects of this film were so strangely inconsistent with what futurists predicted for other elements. Giant holographic screens, biometric scanners everywhere, medical sensors that use nanotechnology, fifteen layers of public transport throughout the city skyline, and "black wasp" hover jet bikes with heads up weapon targeting displays. But wait.
The old school 23-inch Apple Cinema displays are still popular 45 years later. And so are the Dodge Magnum station wagons with sporty Hemi engines. And the Chevrolet SSR Heffalump? Fit for the intersection of IT nerd and white trash who Steve Buscemi plays.
Instead of hiring a team of futurists to do the job well, as Steven Spielberg did, Michael Bay decided he could pick out some likely scenarios, of what the world will be like after his death. Like the Johnny Rockets empire that will succeed Michael Bay's film legacy. Johnny Rockets is ever present in the Los Angeles of the future. Much more so that the Taco Bell of Demolition Man's future. We all know that Johnny Rockets has what it takes to survive the brutal restaurant industry of the future. But what about bacon? Could Bay have selected a more unlikely delicacy for the future? And hepatitis? Humans can be cloned and brainwashed into full adulthood within a year (and no stretch marks!) but there is still no cure for Hepatitis B in sight?